About 30 years ago (oh, yes, I was merely a child), I copied this recipe from a co-worker. At that time, I used to type recipes out on lined paper on an old typewriter and keep our favorite recipes in a binder. Obviously, this recipe is one of our favorites. Now protected in plastic sheeting, you can see it has been very well used.
We have since moved most of our collection to our laptop, but we still have binders full of recipes and recipe cards that still need to be converted.
This dish is spicy, but extremely flavorful and very quick from wok (or large frying pan) to plate. It does not taste like an Indian curry dish, as you might expect. Cooking the spices prior to adding to the sauce brings out the medley of flavors in the curry powder.
Warning! Your kitchen will smell like this dish for a minimum of 24 hours, but it is worth it.
by Terri Powers for Terri's Table
2-1/2 lbs. pork chops
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 egg white
1 medium sized red pepper
1 medium size green pepper (since we don't care for green peppers, I use orange or yellow)
1 onion
4 large cloves garlic
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons curry powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons tomato paste
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons sherry
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Carefully cut the meat away from the bone and cut meat into 1/4 inch slices about 1 inch long. Put in a large bowl. Add the cornstarch and egg white. Stir well in one direction with your hand so that you have coated the meat thoroughly. Refrigerate while preparing the vegetables.
All vegetables should be cut the same size as the pork for even cooking.
Cut the peppers into 1 inch pieces. Separate the onion halves into their natural layer divisions, then cut into 1 inch pieces. Smash garlic; peel and roughly chop. Place the vegetables, separated, on a platter.
In a small cup or dish, mix the sherry, sugar and soy sauce. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a small pan. Stir in curry powder and red pepper flakes. Cook and stir 1 minute. Be careful not to burn. Add the tomato paste and mix quickly. Remove from heat and set aside.
Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a wok. Add the pork. Stir-fry over high heat about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from pan to bowl.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in the wok. Stir fry garlic (do not brown). Add peppers and stir-fry over high heat for 1 to 2 minutes; add onions and stir-fry for another 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the vegetables from the wok.
Add remaining 1 tablespoon of oil to the work. Stir in curry mixture. Add the sherry/sugar/soy sauce mixture and stir well. Return the meat and vegetables to the wok. Stir-fry thoroughly until sauce has covered the meat and vegetables and the mixture is hot. Serve with hot white rice.
Note: We really like the sauce for this dish and I usually double the sauce recipe except for the red pepper flakes, i.e., 2 tablespoons oil (for the curry and red pepper), 4 tablespoons curry powder, 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, 4 teaspoons tomato paste, 4 tablespoons sherry, 4 teaspoons sugar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Szechwan Pork Curry
Saturday, February 16, 2008
"Tradition wears a snowy beard, romance is always young."~ John Greenleaf Whittier
No matter how old I get ~ and I am old ~ I love to celebrate Valentine's Day with Tom. We don't buy each other gifts anymore. We don't go out to dinner. We used to go out, but we have decided that restaurant dining for any kind of holiday is too rushed and too crowded and we prefer spending up to two or three hours and making our dinner an event.
Tom buys me a card, which he leaves on the table in the morning, and "surprises me" with a bouquet of flowers when he comes home. My card and gift to him is taking the day off and spend it preparing a dinner that we have chosen together.
Well, not exactly just preparing a dinner. I pretty much go over the top. I start with preparing the menu to display on the table. This was our Valentine's Day menu:
Since we live in a culinary wasteland (unless, of course, you like to eat BBQ at Chez Bubba), we have a difficult time finding in our grocery stores many of the ingredients we use almost on a daily basis. As I have mentioned before, I shop online a lot for things like Minor's Soup Bases, which I get at Soupbase.com, white and black truffle oil that I order from Earthy.com and jars of oil packed anchovies that I get at CapriFlavors.com.
When it comes to lobster, mussels, caviar and a delicious maple sugar smoked salmon, I won't order anywhere else but MaineLobsterDirect.com. When you order live lobster and mussels, they are shipped overnight, packed in ice and ALIVE. This time I ordered the caviar (American Paddlefish), blinis, maple sugar smoked salmon and lobster tails. But, enough of the advertisements (no, they don't pay me to advertise for them. I just like sharing a really good find.)
The first thing in the morning I set the table. I like to use red as a major color in the theme and several years ago, I found small plastic boxes of silk rose petals in red and pink. This year I used only red. This was the place setting:
I arranged the appetizers on the plate: the smoked salmon, caviar and blinis and served it with a Dill Creme Fraiche (sort of).
We can't get Creme Fraiche here, so I have developed a nice substitute that tastes just like it.
by Terri Powers for Terri's Table
1/2 cup sour cream (I use low fat)
2 - 3 tablespoons of heavy cream
pinch of salt
pinch of white pepper
Mix in a small bowl with a small whisk until blended very well and not runny at all. To this you can add any herb you like. I used about a teaspoon of dill, but I have used fresh tarragon or fresh chives and they were also delicious.
I put the baking potatoes in the oven before we sat down to the table, along with the Cauliflower au Gratin that I had put together earlier in the day and refrigerated. We sat for about an hour and a half, nibbling at the appetizers, talking and drinking white wine. It was luxurious.
I pulled myself away from the table to prepare the lobster.
by Terri Powers for Terri's Table
2 large lobster tails - 8 to 10 ounces each
1/2 pound unsalted butter
3 cups water with 1 teaspoon Minor's Lobster Base
2 bamboo skewers
To prepare the lobster, take a sharp pair of kitchen shears and very carefully cut down the center lengthwise through the shell on both sides of the tail (top side and underside), stopping short of the tail fin, which will be left on. On the top side of the tail carefully reach your fingers under one side of the shell between the meat and the shell and run your fingers down the entire length of the shell to separate. At this point, you should be able to gently pull off one side of the shell, leaving the tail intact. You may need to cut the last shell segment from the tail fin, but do so very carefully. Do the same to the other side. Be sure to remove any pieces of broken shell.
Lay the lobsters tails flat, top side up, and insert a bamboo skewer into the tail lengthwise down to the tail fin. Cut excess skewer off, leaving just enough to hold onto to pull it out when served. This will keep the tail from curling while cooking. At this point, I covered the tails with plastic wrap and refrigerated until time to cook. Remove the lobster tails from the refrigerator about 15 minutes to preparing your poaching liquid.
To prepare poaching liquid, pour water and lobster base into a frying pan large enough to allow the lobster tails to lie flat. Bring the water to a boil and reduce heat to a very gentle simmer (no hotter than 165ºF). Cut the butter into chunks and add to the broth, whisking until the butter is melted completely and fully incorporated. Put the lobster tails into the poaching liquid and keep temperature between 150ºF and 165ºF. Do not allow the liquid to become any hotter as it will break the butter and separate. Poach the lobster tails for 15 minutes, turning halfway through the cooking time. Remove the lobster tails from the liquid to the plate. You may use the poaching liquid for dipping, if desired.
So this was dinner. I realized two things: 1) I didn't think it through really well because everything on the plate was, essentially, white, and 2) the lobster was so rich that serving it with two or three light vegetables would have been adequate. I finished my lobster and little else. But, we had a great time, just the two of us.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
The Cardiologist's Diet: If it tastes good, spit it out. ~ Author Unknown
A couple of weeks ago, I was looking through some of my favorite blogs and I inadvertently came across BearlyEdible.com. When I scrolled down the page, I stopped at this recipe for Roast Lemon Chicken with Croutons.
Now, my husband, Tom, is a bread lover: sandwiches, garlic bread, crackers, pita, baguette, croissants, biscuits, bagels and even tortillas. Tom has never met a piece of bread that he didn't like. So, I thought, croutons? That's kind of an interesting concept.
I am here to tell you that this dish is more than an "interesting concept." It is amazing! The lemons brighten the flavor of the chicken and the drippings. Just the right amount of herbs season the meat and the skin. I love a flavorful roast chicken. Remember the Balsamic Roasted Chicken that Reggie Southerland made on the Next Food Network Star? That was amazing, too. But, this dish, using the croutons instead of potatoes, rice, polenta or grits... well, it just put the flavor and texture over the top.
I did make some minor changes to the dish. Primarily, I added the rosemary springs and made the croutons in the oven instead of frying them, but I did that mostly because I'm lazy. You will see my notes in italics.
Adapted by Chef Tom @ Bearly Edible from Ina Garten's Barefoot in Paris
1 - 3 to 4 pound roasting chicken
1 large onion, sliced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon rosemary (rather than leaves, I used ground)
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 lemons, quartered
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
6 cup 3/4 inch bread cubes (1 baguette French bread)
3 sprigs of rosemary (optional ~ not included in original recipe)
In the morning of the dinner, or the night before, remove the giblets from the chicken and wash out. Trim the fat from the chicken carcass. Pat the chicken dry. Mis together the salt, pepper, rosemary and oregano in a small bowl. Coat the skin and the interior cavity with the spices (I found doing the inside first, then the skin the easiest. Seal in a Ziploc bag and allow to sit in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake.
Preheat the oven to 425º. Remove the chicken from the bag and stuff the cavity with quartered lemons and sprigs of rosemary. Tie the legs together and tuck the wings under the carcass. Place the onions in a roaster with a few tablespoons of olive oil. Set the chicken on the onions. Drizzle the melted butter over the chicken. Roast for 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours until the juices run clear and the thickest part of the chicken reads 165º. Remove from the oven and cover with foil while you prepare the croutons.
Cut the baguette into 3/4 inch cubes. Preheat a large sauté pan with 2 tablespoon olive oil until very hot. Add bread cubes. Turn heat to medium and continue cooking bread cubes and tossing as they toast. It should take about 10 minutes to reach a toasted crouton state. Add olive oil as needed to keep from sticking. Finish by coating with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper. Place the toasted croutons on a serving platter. Okay, I did this part differently. I brushed a large baking sheet with olive oil and put the bread cubes on the sheet in a single layer. I brushed the croutons with olive oil. When I removed the chicken from the oven, I turned the oven down to 400º and put the bread cubes in the oven for about 10 to 15 minutes until just golden brown. When I removed them from the oven, I sprinkled them with the salt and pepper and placed them on a large serving platter.
Remove the chicken from the roasting pan and remove the lemon quarters and rosemary from the cavity. Cut the chicken into serving pieces and arrange over the croutons. Strain the juices and remove as much fat as possible. Heat, if necessary and pour over chicken and croutons. Serve. We also served the beautiful caramelized onions with the chicken and croutons. They were sweet, savory and delicious!
Saturday, February 2, 2008
"Nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea, Yeah Pepto Bismol!"
As I posted back in November and December, we did not have Thanksgiving dinner at our house last year. Tom's sister cooked dinner at their house. As much as I love it when someone else does the cooking and serving, when all is said and done, I miss the leftovers. So Tom and I always have our own small turkey dinner.
We always make turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, but I wanted something just a little different this year and when I came across this recipe, I thought I'd try it. It really didn't sound very tasty, but the people on a forum that I visit just raved about it. So I thought, what the heck! I might as well try it.
Look, I know it looks awful. I completely agree with you, but, not only is it delicious on turkey, we had it with these Parmesan Crusted Pork Chops that I initially posted back in September 2007. The recipe makes a lot for the two of us, so I had frozen the rest to use later.
Adapted from NPR, Susan Stamburg, Nov 23, 2006
2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed
1 small onion
3/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish (not horseradish sauce)
Put cranberries and onion in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Do not puree.
Add the sour cream, sugar and horseradish and mix well.
Put in a plastic container and freeze.I divided it into two containers.
About an hour and a half or so before you are ready to serve, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw just until a few ice slivers remain. It should be thick and creamy and, of course, that bright pink color.
Makes about 1-1/2 pints.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
